Total pages in book: 164
Estimated words: 152666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 152666 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 763(@200wpm)___ 611(@250wpm)___ 509(@300wpm)
“What?” I said stupidly.
Anger blistered in each word. “You took another of those doses last night? When?”
I froze, suddenly uncomfortable. The guy could be intimidating when he wanted to be.
“Um . . . last night after dinner? I figured I should have a full stomach for it because of that waxy stuff.”
“Are you fucking serious?” He was off the horse in a blink. I barely had enough time to register him reaching for me before I was ripped off the back of the horse and set on my feet. He leaned down into my face, his tone icy. “You would’ve died yesterday, Aurelia. If we hadn’t given you the phoenix enhanced elixir, you would’ve died. We have precious little left and it’s not safe to bring out your animal to help you heal. If you take more of that poison, there is a damn good chance you’ll die. Is that what our sacrifice means to you?”
His anger was contagious. I was no longer a captive, not like before. I’d have a say in my life, especially in the parts that held the potential for danger.
“Your sacrifice?” I demanded. “Is that what you call it when you bash my head in? You used one of your precious elixirs for that, didn’t you?”
I’d asked Hadriel about it, and was riveted to learn how a phoenix came to be.
“You are not to take more of those drugs,” he said in a vicious tone.
“You don’t get to tell me what to do,” I spat back. “You have pack members suffering from a loss created by those drugs. I played a part in that. I’ll be damned if I don’t do everything in my power to at least try to make it right. In order to know what I’m up against, I have to understand it. In order to understand it, I have to know the effects it has on the body. To properly study the effects, I have to take it. I think I’ve gotten a handle on how long it stays in the bloodstream. It’s kind of like alcohol, I think, but the addiction is a cumulative effect. I’m starting to crave—“
He grabbed my arm and marched me farther into the trees until we were standing on our own, without an audience.
“Are you out of your fucking mind?” he demanded in a low growl. “You’re putting yourself at risk, and we don’t have the resources to keep pulling you out. You’re starting to crave it? What happens when you get fully addicted? You’re already malnourished from that horror village. You can’t stand to eat much less and I won’t let you put yourself in harm’s way to combat an unfeeling organization that would gladly throw you back into its production like just another faceless cog. If you don’t stop, I’ll be forced to strip you of your things and tie you up, if need be. I won’t allow you to continue this madness.”
“You’d strip me of my things and tie—” I narrowed my eyes at him. “You can’t control me, so you’re going to force me to be a prisoner again, is that it? You’re the alpha—you get what you want by any means necessary.” I lifted my eyebrows in question. “People fall in line or people are forced in line, right?”
“If you don’t listen to reason, don’t do what’s in your best interest, then yes, I’ll force you to do as you’re told.”
Delicious shivers washed over me. Now was not the time to get turned on by his dominance.
I took a step toward him, my anger now unleashed. The electricity between us danced like lightning.
“Let’s get a few things straight, shall we?” My voice was firm and rough, matching his. “You don’t get to decide how I live my life because you offered to shield me from those who wish to use me. Never forget that shielding me from them helps your cause, too. Taking me to your dragons was always your end goal—I’m now helping you do that. I didn’t deliver myself into your care so that you could control me or push me around.
“That horror village, as you called it, was my home. It wasn’t pretty, but it was all I had. If nothing else, have a little fucking respect for my feelings. If I get fully addicted, which I plan to do, I’ll take notes on how it feels and prevent myself from taking more to see how long it takes to wane. All of that is relevant. Like I said, I need to understand it in order to combat it. You came for me in order to stop the drug trade, and now that I am gathering information to do exactly that, you’re pushing back and ordering me around? Fuck that. I am in a unique position to help you here. Do not prevent me from doing my job.”